THE FARM GARDEN.

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume VI, Issue 6, 16 June 1913, Page 656

THE FARM GARDEN.

W. H. Taylor.

Tomatoes and Blight.—A Retrospect. At the time of writingl2th May—we have just gathered the last ripe tomatoes of the season. Frost has killed the plants, or there would have been a few more. Blight is very common in this district every year. The crop just over is the eighth I have grown at the Weraroa Experimental Farm, but only once have I been troubled by blight. Last year, when the crop was two-thirds gathered, it suddenly appeared during some very wet weather. Very little spraying is done in these parts — plants being sprayed sometimes once, but generally not at all. There were absolutely no tomatoes in the district during two seasons except at this farm. The reason for this immunity is, I believe, because I have always worked on the plan advised by this Department — I never manure at the time of planting. All the manuring done is the giving of a dusting of superphosphate and bonedust after- the first fruits are set. The fertilizer is hoed in with a flat, hoe, or with a sharp rake. Inquiries made from people who have lost their crops through blight have always elicited the fact that the plants were well manured, and, in some cases, frequently watered. The general opinion, appears to be that, being a strong-growing plant, the tomato requires a lot of feeding. Thus every means are taken to build up the very thing that should be most avoideda soft, gross plant.- What is really required is a tough, firm growth. We should aim, in fact, to correct the natural gross habit of the plant, by growing it in only moderately good ground, and also, by constant repression of shoots, to prevent a lot of growth. There is another source of blight worth mentioning. All efforts to grow a hard-wooded plant may fail if the surroundings are not conducive to that state. A perfectly open situation and' full exposure to sun are necessary. And an otherwise open situation may be completely altered by growing the wrong crops in close proximity to the tomatoes. : A case in point : A plot of ground, through which ran a row of tomato-plants, was sown with partridge peas, to be dug in as green manure. The peas made strong growth, covered all the ground, and stood up about 15 in. above the surface. At early morning the- pea-haulm was reeking with moisture, and the sheltering growth kept the ground wet all day, thus creating a

moisture-laden atmosphere about the tomato-plants, which were on the side of the pea-patch opposite to the windy quarter.. When blight was reported on a plant where I expected its appearance the plant was at once pulled out and the peas dug in.

Overfeeding. Along the same lines as overfeeding tomato-plants; mistakes may be made with other things by those who • are the fortunate possessors of a good supply of stable manure. Certain plants are said to require “ high cultivation ” or “ good cultivation,” but the terms are often misunderstood as meaning a tremendous lot of manure. “High cultivation” is often. used to indicate that a certain, thing requires skill, with or without much feeding. The ‘ highest Cultivation is to give a plant exactly the treatment it requires, perhaps with no manure at all. Some years ago there were a series of losses that caused much debate in a certain part of New Zealand. A mysterious disease killed all the asters in a rich' man’s garden. Our scientists could find no disease. There was none. The explanation, I believe, was to be found in the fact that too much manure had been applied. The ground was given all it would hold, and as soon as the plants were established in the ground a heavy mulch of rich manure was put about them. The result was that in a very short time, they were certainly remarkably fine plants, but then came an extra hot day, and the plants laid down and died, simply collapsing. In the course of two or three weeks all that had made strong growth were dead. The reason for the collapse was that the ground was so rich that the plants made tops out of proportion to the roots. When the stress. of hot weather came the roots were not able to supply sufficient moisture to the tops to compensate for the loss by evaporation. There can be no doubt but that overfeeding predisposes plants to disease. Vegetable Culture. A knowledge of how plants behave in different circumstances is necessary to an understanding of what is right. Tomato grow far too strongly in our climate. In a hotter and. drier climate they are not so rampant, and in such circumstances more manure would be required. Rhubarb and cauliflowers are worthless unless they grow very strongly. Both are liable to collapse if insufficiently fed. Rhubarb, it is well known, will die in early autumn if unable to find .sufficient food. It may be. useful to state the manner of the collapse. In the first place, the leaves turn yellow in patches; this colour gives place to red, deepening to crimson. The stalks turn brown and soften, and the leaf falls. This - takes place over the whole clump, and the ■crowns rot away. Cauliflowers and plants of the. same family when imperfectly fed are subject to a trouble known as malnutrition

disease.” The plants make very poor growth, and the leaves, are spotted with black. The fact that the leaves are spotted need not necessarily be due to want of feeding, because there are other diseases causing such an appearance. It is necessary to have some understanding of the requirements of the various subjects to be grown if good crops are to be raised. By this time a general plan for next season’s planting and sowing should have been arranged. I am supposing that manure is available-and nothing else is so good for many crops. Ground newly manured is not good for underground root crops, such, as parsnips, carrots, beet, artichokes, and potatoes. The last-named, advisedly, will be referred to again. Peas, beans of all kinds, cauliflowers, cabbages, lettuce, turnips, spinach—all thrive best on freshly manured ground. The best plan is to alternate the crops : manure well for those last enumerated, and in the following year use the ground for the previously mentioned crops, applying a little artificial manure as well. Celery and rhubarb cannot be overmanured. Rhubarb is, of course, not merely an annual tenant. Celery, to be well grown, has to be planted in deeply dug and heavily manured trenches. The digging of the trenches and the various operations of moulding up give the ground a very fine tilling, and the remains of the, manure produce a lasting benefit. This year’s celery quarters are the best ■possible place for next year’s parsnips. The soil will be in good tilth ; the manure being low down and the strength having gone from it, the roots work freely, and go down to the manure, which is too low to have any effect in causing them to fork, as fresh manure dug in will do. Where stable manure is scarce recourse may • have been had to tares, clover, or partridge peas for a supply of humus to dig in. Some say that winter cover-crops will keep down weeds, but this is a delusion and a snare when applied' to vegetable-gardening. If any such crops are now growing, or if there is any weedy ground, dig them in at once and give the soil the benefit of a good airing before seedtime. This will do more good than a little extra green growth, and will afford an opportunity of getting rid of slugs, for cropping with legumes has the serious disadvantage of forming a nursery for slugs. In the ordinary course of gardening, slugs disappear in the hot weather and are not troublesome again till spring. If you grow patches of partridge peas you will have them all the time. We have found it so to our cost.

To return to potatoes and manure : The general opinion is that maiden pasture land is best for potatoes, without using manure of any sort. ■ My own observations verify this. But it must be good land,, and the turf turned under in autumn. Given land of fair- to good quality, such as that around me,. it can be cropped two years with

potatoes without manure. The second year usually gives the better crop, doubtless because of the complete disintegration of the turf which had not taken place in the first year. The addition of farmyard manure to such' land has been proved to be attended with disastrous results, A large amount of .. haulm is produced with a poor crop of tubers, and the overluxuriant haulm is predoomed to blight.' But all land will not grow potatoes without manure, and. where this is the case it is necessary to apply it. The same must occur in gardens that are under continual cropping. Manure may then be given with safety. But I conclude as I began, by stating that the best potatoes are grown without stable or farmyard, manure.

In the working of a garden there is from time to time necessity for fires, to burn up rubbish of various kinds. The remains of these fires are of value. If branches have been burned, so as to leave a residue of wood-ash, it is worth while putting the ashes under cover as soon as they are cold and before much rain has fallen on them. If a corner of a shed is available, or a corner sheltered with a few sheets of old corrugated iron so as to keep the ashes dry, they will be valuable as a top-dressing to soil prepared for onions. We always do this, and spread the ashes just before we draw the drills. When the fire-remains consist more of burnt earth than of wood-ash they should be wheeled to a convenient place, where they may lie for a time, mot sheltered, from rain in this case. These ashes are very useful in a variety of ways when the lightening of heavy soil may be desirable, or for mixing, with compost for raising seedling plants. Current Work. General seed-sowing will soon be the order of the day. There is also a certain amount of planting to be done. Planting should include rhubarb of the summer varieties, cabbage, cauliflower, lettuce, onions, garlic, shallots, potato onions, and potatoes for early supply in placesnot subject to frost. Pea sowing begins now in the ordinary course. Varieties have been dealt with in recent issues of this Journal. Sow a dwarf variety - for first uses, and, at the same time, a taller one to succeed them. Broad beans may be sown, if not in before. Carrot seed of Early Horn type may be sown in small quantity. Lettuce seed may be sown. Onion seed may be put in wherever the soil is in a fit state and can be relied on to remain so, always bearing in 'mind that, though the earlier they can be got in the better the chance of good crops, it

is bad practice to sow seed if it will be a long time coming up, or if the plants linger in growth after they are up, as will be the case if the soil is cold.

Onions require a firm seed-bed on soil that will not cake under heavy rain. Drills should be very shallow, merely deep enough to allow for covering the seed. Soot is a very fine fertilizer for onions, and helps to keep insect pests away. It should be broadcasted before sowing the seed. Superphosphate is' also a good fertilizer, and should be broadcasted as though it were grass-seed and about as thick as you would sow grass-seed.

Rhubarb should be planted in rich ground, in rows about 3 ft. apart, and 30 in. to 36 in. apart in the rows. The sets should be put in so that the crowns are barely covered. Where there are old beds of rhubarb, with the clumps getting broad, they are probably deteriorating, and should be dug up and chopped in pieces. They will make as many new sets as can be secured with crowns. One or two strong crowns are enough for a set. It is best to take the plants up ' after three' years. ' Sometimes, to save the trouble of lifting, the outer parts are chopped oh, but this is hardly a good plan, though advised by supposed great authorities, for it is evident that the young parts are destroyed and the old parts kept. Cabbage and cauliflower plants put out should be from the autumn sown bed. Older plants may be available when the latter are not, but it would be bad policy to plant them, as they would be almost certain to bolt to seed without heading in. Lettuces may be planted as soon as young plants are large enough, if the bed of young plants is sufficiently extensive. Those wanted for planting should be drawn out in such a way as to leave some plants undisturbed and a few inches apart. Those so left will provide the earliest cutting. In damp situations the lettuce-beds should be raised. Beds should be about 5 ft. broad with a spit-wide path between, in order that weeding can be done from each side without treading between the plants. - Onions planted now are to secure large bulbs—that is, proportionately large according to variety. The usual object in sowing onions in autumn for- transplanting is to produce large bulbs. Bor this purpose varieties of the Rocca and Ailsa Craig type are sown. These must be allowed room' in proportion to their size. The rows may be 15 in. apart, and a 12 in. space between the plants is not too much if the soil is good and has been supplied with stable manure. If less rich allow 10 in., as we do without stable -manure. Bulbs may be expected to vary from 2 lb. to 3 lb. each in these conditions, being heavier where they have stable manure to feed on. Give a top-

dressing of wood-ashes if at. hand before planting. There are various ways of planting. It is best not to let the plants get long beforehand. Care must be taken not to bury the stems; just the roots and the smallest possible portion of the stems should be covered. It is best not to try to make them, stand upright. . Let them lean on the ground. They will right themselves very soon after they begin to grow. The smaller varieties, those of the Brown Spanish type, should be planted closersay, 5 in. or 6 in; apart. Bor these the most expeditious way of planting is to draw a shallow drill. The marker used to drill for seed will • make drills deep enough. Lay the plants on their sides, with the roots in the drill, and push in just enough soil to cover the roots. Small Fruit. Gooseberry bushes may now be pruned. The chief object sought should be a bush with branches so arranged that it will be easy to gather the fruit.' This means that they must not be very close together, and that the centre of the bush should be open. Varieties of a drooping habit should be pruned with a view to counteracting this tendency. Shoots pointing downward should be removed, or if this is -not desirable they should be pruned to an upward bud. There is no necessity for much shortening of side shoots. It should be remembered that the young wood will bear fruit, and that the quantity will be in proportion to length of this. While it would not be wise to leave the shoots full length and institute a state of overbearing, which would result in poor fruit, it is preferable to shorten those on the outer and upper parts by about one-third, and those in the inner and lower parts of the bush back to spurs. ' Gooseberry may also be planted now. Plant 5 ft. apart. The most profitable variety for culinary purposes is Farmers’ Glory, a very large and prolific sort. This is the variety I recommend for planting in quantity. . The good points of some varieties are lost in this part of the world, where jam from ripe gooseberries is practically unknown. This is a pity, for preserves from ripe fruit are very superior to those made from green. Ironmonger (Rough Red) and Warrington are rhe two famous jam-making varieties in the Old Country--that is, when the ripe fruit is used. Broom Girl, China Orange, High Sheriff, Pineapple, Gipsy Queen, Red Champagne, Overall, Gregory’s Perfection, Freedom, Whitesmith, and Jolly Miller are all good desert varieties. ,

Many attempts to grow red currants have proved futile, partly through wrong pruning,' but mainly through planting wrong varieties. Pruning consists in securing an open framework of leading branches. All side shoots are to be pruned' back to short spurs, for the red currant never bears fruit on the young shoots, but on spurs on older

wood. Reliable varieties are Chenanceaux, Cherry Red, La Versaillaise, and Fay’s Prolific.

Black Currants.— The .chief difficulty with these is the borer. A proper system of pruning, however, pretty well conquers it. But it is useless to attempt to grow black currants unless soil and other condi tions are suitable. There must be plenty of moisture all through the summer, with a cool subsoil. This state can be provided by deep trenching and plenty of strong manure. In the absence- of manure do not try to grow black currants, unless the soil is of an exceptional character, retaining moisture throughout summer. In such cases artificial manure will supply the place of natural manure. Black currants bear on the young wood, and this should be encouraged, cutting away old wood to make room for young. Young side shoots should be slightly shortened, not much beyond removing the tips which are immature. There is this vital difference in the training of the red currant and the black : that whereas the red must be trained to a single clean stem from the ground, no suckers whatever being allowed, the black currant should be encouraged to make suckers, and these should be preserved .in sufficient number to enable the gradual and continual renewal of the bush by cutting out the old branches to make room for young suckers, not doing it all at once, but a little each year. This method promotes continual youth in the bush, and prevents the borer from doing much harm. Raspberry canes should be thinned out to about 6 in. in each clump, and should all be shortened by about 12 in. Loganberries.— Young rods that have been preserved, as previously advised, should be laid in in place” of old ones, which after bearing twice should be cut out. Rods that have borne fruit last season and are to be retained will be furnished with the shoots that carried the fruit. These should be cut back to short spurs. .Blower-garden. Complete rose-planting as scon as possible, and prune established bushes. Pruning varies for the different classes, and even for individual varieties occasionally. With hybrid perpetuals there is a general shortening of shoots in a severe manner. It should be the aim to produce shapely bushes,. therefore the centre stem should be the highest. Roughly stated, leading shoots should be shortened to one-third of their length, and side shoots to two eyes. The first thing is to remove entirely any spindly shoots there may be, and any dead wood, any extra gross or soft shoots, and any that appear to threaten to crowd the bush. Frau Karl Druschki and J. B. Clark are both exceedingly strong, and must not be cut back so severely. New long shoots may

be tied over like a bow, and not shortened, but remove 'Some of those previously treated in the same way. Or the shoots may be somewhat shortened according to strength, leaving them from 6 in. to 10 in. long. I find this plan answers well. Remember when planting these varieties to allow them plenty of room, as they make large bushes. Thin out old twiggy branches of tea roses, to make room for young growth, and remove weak spindly stuff ; shorten the remainder only slightly. Clear out the centres of polyantha roses, and shorten remainder by one-third. Lay in young rods of climbing-roses, and remove old rods that have become twiggy. As a rule it is best to remove a rod after it has flowered twice. All side shoots should be cut back to spurs. When cleaning up the borders it is usual to do a certain amount of pruning to the various shrubs. This kind of thing should be done with understanding, and with a view to develop the characteristics of the individuals, and not to make them all alike by cropping with shears. Prunus pissardi, the purple-foliaged plum, is a beautiful tree if allowed .to assume its . natural habit. It should be trained up as though it were an ordinary plum-tree, only the centre instead of beinghollow should be full—the style, in fact, of a standard cherry-tree viz., a clean stem for a few feet, then main branches radiating equally around so as to form an even head, which should not be crowded. The flowering-cherries should be similarly treated. The generality of flower-ing-shrubs should not be pruned at this time, the exception being the case of late-flowering varieties. The pruning of all flowering-shrubs should be done immediately after flowering, whenever that may be, and it is not, in proper practice, permissible to do anything more now than to cut away straggling branches of the early flowering-shrubs.

Hydrangeas may be shortened back to strong buds in the case of the old flowering-shoots. These end in the dead flower-head, but those shoots that are terminated by foliage should be left untouched, as 'the ends of such shoots will develop blossoms. This reminds me of an old way of furnishing nice little plants for house-decoration. If a watch is kept on the leafy shoots of the hydrangeas they will presently show the beginning of the flower-heads. As soon as this is seen cut off the shoots just below the second joint, pot them singly in 3 in. pots in light soil, and plunge them in a hotbed. They will soon root. Then take them out to a cooler frame, water with weak liquid manure every time, and they will develop heads of flower 5 in. or 6 in. across.

- A hotbed is very useful at this time for raising seed and striking cuttings. When July is well in, a start may be made with the sowing of half-hardy annuals, &c., under glass ; and in places free of frost hardy annuals may be sown in the open ground. Pansy-plants should be got into their beds. These like cool weather, and get a strong start if out early, giving the best flowers of . the season towards the end of spring.